The present invention relates generally to the viewing of Web pages on the Internet from a Web browser. This invention provides a method for preselecting a list of hypertext links and then displaying the Web pages without requiring further intervention by a user.
The Internet refers to the network of computers that arose out of the network created by the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) using the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) as the method for providing communication between the computers on the network. Other networks are in common use. For example, networks known as Intranets, in which the access is limited to users within an organization, also commonly use TCP/IP. A popular method of accessing information across a network such as the Internet is a hypertext-based information system known as the World Wide Web (Web). Hypertext is a means of connecting a variety of discrete information content sources or blocks (referred to in the art as xe2x80x9cnodesxe2x80x9d), and providing links from one information node to one or more other nodes. A node could comprise a block of text, images, audio, or other types of information. For example, a hypertext document located on a server computer may provide links to documents located within the same document, or within another document on the same server, or to a document located on another server. The location of the information node is usually provided by a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) which provides an address as well as information about the type of data.
Typically, a user will access data on the Web by viewing hypertext files, known as Web sites, and viewing those Web sites with client software known as a Web browser. Commonly, Web sites are written in a programming language, such as Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). A hypertext file that is loaded and displayed by a browser is often referred to as a Web page. A Web page often contains many hypertext links to other files (Web pages, multimedia files, etc.) which may be located on the same computer system, or on any other computer connected on the Internet. Many Web browsers may have their functionality extended by small programs call plug-ins. For example, if the link URL points to a video file, a plug-in may be added to the Web browser to allow a user to view the video without having to install the entire software application that was originally used to create the video file, saving computer resources and providing portability and interoperability. Many other functionality may be added to a browser using techniques known to those skilled in the art.
When a user clicks a hypertext link, typically using an input device known as a pointer, the browser uses the address provided in the URL to load and display the referenced file on the client computer system. If the file is another Web page, the user may choose to follow the links provided on that Web page, and continue on in a similar fashion. Often, though, a user will want to explore a number of the links provided on a given Web page before moving on to another site.
Many Web browsers generally maintain a list of links previously visited. Upon completion of viewing a selected hypertext link, activating the xe2x80x9cBackxe2x80x9d button returns the user to the previous page featuring the original list of hypertext links. However, this method requires a user to click the xe2x80x9cBackxe2x80x9d button and reload the original Web page each time before selecting another link. This can be time consuming as well as tedious for a user.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a user with the ability to preselect a group of hypertext links from a list of links provided on a given Web page and then view these pages in sequence without having to reload the Web page that contained the original list of links.
It is another object of the present invention to provide improved response when viewing a sequence of selected hypertext links.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a method and utility is provided to extend the function of a Web browser to allow a user to select a list of hypertext links to view in a preferred sequence. According to the present invention, when the user clicks on a hypertext link, the URL is copied to a list rather than causing the page, or more generally, the node, to be loaded. When the user has finished selecting list of links to view, the utility will then display the first selected node, and load the other selected nodes (or pages) while the user is viewing the first node. When the user has completed viewing the first node, the next node may be displayed with improved performance because the downloading has already started or has been completed.
The novel features believed to be characteristic of this invention are set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, as well as other objects and advantages thereof, may be best understood by reference to the following detailed description of an illustrated preferred embodiment to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.